New user, 1st post, long time lurker. This is the deal. Just bought a 69 f100 and thought I would do a quick updo and make some cash. Different frame VIN, door VIN, and title VIN. Lots of rust and lots of trouble. THEN...I started looking at my old and tired 64 F100 that I've wanted to fix for a daily driver/workhorse for many years. Much less work and more enjoyable in the end. Now I need help with engine options.

It currently has the 223 with 3 speed. I rebuilt the head years ago, but left the sloppy lower end. Smoked like a locomotive. I currently have the carb apart for a rebuild, so I could put it back together and see if it was any better than I remember.

The recently purchased 69/69/67 has a later model 302 with serpentine belts and a 3 speed. Bad fuel pump, but will start and run well with gas dribbling in the carb.
I have 2 other 302 engines circa 82/83 laying around with some awful fuel injection and AODs.
[edited]Forgot to mention that a buddy is scrapping 2 mid/late 70s vans and he said he would let me have a trans. C4 I think.[end edit]

Recently aquired a complete, running Yblock from a huge 56ish farm truck. It seemed to run well without smoke before I pulled it. Owner said the engine had been replaced with a slightly newer model many years earlier. The 5 speed tranny is still around too, but I let the 2 speed rearend go to the scrap yard.

So, I'm looking for advice and/or suggestions. Ultimate goal would be to make this a replacement for my 85 5.0 EFI AOD truck.

And sorry for the long post. Happens when you look forever and think about it too much.

 

My vote would be to use the Y block if its a good runner...The big truck 5 speed would be cool too.

Greg

 

If your real interested in keeping it with a 223; i'm pulling one from my 64 F100 complete with trans & radiator. Price is right for sell. If interested PM me. I'm installing a 76 360 & C-6 in my truck.

Mitch

 

" If your real interested in keeping it with a 223; i'm pulling one from my 64 F100 complete with trans & radiator. Price is right for sell. If interested PM me. I'm installing a 76 360 & C-6 in my truck."

Not necessarily interested, but it has crossed my mind. Lots of stuff from the 64 would work for my 53 fordor customline. Any info on the swap you're doing? I like cheap and easy.

 

Bump.

Would the Y-block be the easiest swap? I'm a little concerned about parts availability and MPG. However my dad has a y-block in his 56 sedan and we have another complete engine and then a parts engine also.

 

Bump this again. I'm really looking for advice, suggestions or thoughts. So far the response has been weak. Does it have something to do with the way I posted? Too much to read?

 

Since a Y-block could have come in it, I think it will be the easiest. You'll need to add a bracket to the front of the frame. As long as you use a truck Y bell housing, it will mount directly to the rear mounts. I believe the existing transmission will mount to the Y bellhousing.

You can get just about anything for a Y new so parts availability is not a concern. If you are considering any performance mods, do your research because a Y does cost more in that area. It'll get just as good and better mileage as many other v8s in a slick when in good tune. You'll want to use a "modern" carb and '57 up distributor for best mileage and performance.

Mine started life with a 223 and now has a 292.

 

Thanks for that info. I took the engine with the bellhousing still attached. It has big ears. It looked different that what I thought it should, but I was looking before at a car eng/auto trans. I'm not planning on HiPo parts. How can I tell if I have a '57 up distributor? What is the advantage of a newer one? The farm truck Y-block has a 1 barrel carb right now. How "modern" should I go?

 

Easier than describing it, look at a set of small block points. Pop the distributor cap off of the Y-Block distributor. If the points look the same as the small block's, it a 57 or newer unit. Another way to tell is that the earlier distributor has springs for the advance mechanism which can be seen once the cap is off. On the later version, the springs cannot be seen without removing the points plate. If the body of the distributor is Motorcraft then it has to be a newer unit.

The earlier distributor has a vacuum mechanism which works completely off of a vacuum signal. The later model uses mechanical and vacuum mechanisms. The later one simply works better. If you have a choice, get the Motorcraft version of the '57 up distributor. It's easier to modify and more reliable.

A small 4 barrell will get the best combination of performance and economy. The manifold you will need for this has ECZ-9425-B cast onto it. Aftermarket aluminum manifolds are available, too but they will be more than twice the cost of this one.
2 barrels work fine and the manifold for a 2 barrel will be cheaper.
If money is a concern, change the distributor first and run it only with the mechanical advance. Only once you make the change to the "modern" carb should you hook up the vacuum advance. If you made the carb swap first, the old distributor would not provide the correct advance because the newer carb does not send the correct vacuum signal.

Go as modern as you like. You might find a rebuilt '57 unit but there is something to be said about the 53 years worth of development since then. You can get newer Holley carbs which will be stock appearing. The Road Demon Jr 525 is pretty popular in the Y crowd and provides an excellent blend of performance and economy. I use a 570 Street Avenger and I like it a lot. Autolites, though old, are quite good. And there's Edelbrock.

 

I didn't really realize that there were different intake manifolds. Never thought about it. There is a one barrel on the old farm truck engine. My dads 56 sedan has a two barrel. So I must assume that even those intakes would be different. I think I still have an intake from my 54 fordor. Are carb adapters available?

 

Adapters are available and they may be a better option. I my have gotten too far ahead of myself. The first thing you need to do is to determine which heads are on the engine you plan to use. Later intake manifolds will not seal well to early heads. A'56 or newer head should seal fine with a '57 - '64 intake.

I don't think your '56 truck engine has a 1 barrell. It's probably a 2 barrell that appears to be a 1 barrell from the outside. If it is in fact a 1 barrell, you will be better off getting another manifold. There's no sense in adapting bigger carb to a 1 barrel manifold.